Chapter 277: Acolyte
「He won’t wake up, is that alright? 」
Dean said while staring at Robe.
「He’s probably fine. 」
Zabuton was just sucking his mana.
「Healing is the spirit’s ability, so even if he’s wounded he’ll be healed. Ah, but it really baffles me how much that spirit likes him with that personality of his… 」
Dinosso glanced at Robe.
「… 」
Ahm, it’s clingy because it’s sucking mana. It’s not because it’s healing him, nor is it because it likes him.
It might look as if Zabuton was covering Robe while he’s sleeping, but all Dinosso and the rest probably saw was a ball of light sticking to his back.
「Meykel, they’re making a new shortcut to the lower levels while there are no monsters around, so a lot of things are being carried down to the 21th floor one after the other. You can eat and drink as much as you want. 」
Retze explained the situation to Mr. Talisman.
Butler told me that I can get some oil by warming a thick slice of smoked pork in a heated frying pan. Since Mr. Talisman is here, the sandwich maker and the campfire have to stay hidden for now. Dried tomatoes won’t do, either… But mushrooms are probably okay.
I borrowed Dean’s thick iron pot, tossed some dried mushrooms and rehydrated it with thin sake instead of water. Added a bit of pepper and thinly sliced strips of bacon to add some saltiness. I put the cheese in once some of the moisture evaporated .
The bread is from the fortress city. It’s dark brown on the inside and a bit sour. It’s the hard and dense type suitable for bringing on trips. I sliced it thinly and toasted it nice and warm then put some mushrooms on top before handing everyone a piece.
It’s about the season for salmon; should I go fishing soon?
「This is delicious, plus the warmth is very much welcome. Oh right, Wolf King Valmour’s spirit is a fire dragon, if I’m not mistaken? I already anticipated that there would be few spirits here, but since even monsters weren’t present, I thought we might be able to go down to the 27th level. I’m sorry for troubling you. 」
「Didn’t you go to the 27th level as planned? 」
「No, we were still on the 24th level when they started behaving strangely. We should’ve returned the moment I noticed it, but I was unable to stop them. They even subtly hinted that they’re going to harm my family. I thought they weren’t that kind of people, but it seems I was mistaken. 」
Mr. Talisman answered Retze with a shrug.
He already anticipated the lack of spirits, so he prepared a lot of things, like buying a lantern even though it’s expensive because the fire in it isn’t easily extinguished.
According to the leaked news about the Guild that Mr. Talisman heard, only a few spirits were left. Even though black spirits were also generated, their priority had been to capture their fellow black spirits and the remaining spirits, apparently.
Moreover, the guy who entered the dungeon wasn’t a hero, but a 『Doll』. He gains power by gobbling spirits, so most of the spirits and black spirits were already almost gone.
The black spirits may be few, but they probably didn’t have any target to eat or possess in this situation. It’s already quite difficult to possess beings that have their own consciousness, but stressors in the environment, or mental instability due to anger, grief, or doubt made people relatively easier to possess.
Just my guess, but Robe probably wasn’t possessed because of his spirit, while Mr. Talisman’s mind wasn’t because his mind was stable.
「Please have a cup of tea after your meal. I blended some ingredients that can help you relax. We will be keeping watch for tonight, so please take it easy. 」
Butler offered tea. Mr. Talisman was hesitant to accept it at first, but after he drank it, he soon started dozing off. He obediently lied down after a while.
Butler, are you sure it’s just herbs in there? Uh, does fake pot also fall into the herb category?
「Alright, let’s go discuss the plans and information we got, shall we? 」
Dinosso rubbed his hands.
「Let’s start with the acolytes. Who are they? As far as I know, they’re kids that temples adopt in expectation that they’re going to be possessed. 」
「That’s about right, frankly speaking. It’s just that only the acolytes themselve can say whether it’s more fortunate to be killed in order to lessen the mouths to be fed, or have their needs guaranteed by being adopted. 」
Dinosso answered Khan’s question.
Butler already knocked out Mr. Talisman, so I can also ask a few questions, right?
「Acolytes are brought up unaware of the ways of the world, and are only taught things deemed necessary for them to know. They also participate in ceremonies and rituals as the face of the temple. Although acolytes can Heal and they normally do that behind the scenes, since many folks are willing to cough up money for that, the temple in the fortress city wouldn’t turn it down. If the donations are hefty and there’s good public exposure, they might also consider letting the acolytes interact with the generous donors.
「They usually hold it in the temple hall. There’s a magic circle drawn there and the acolyte is supported by 5 to 6 people. I had the opportunity to witness it once! 」
「The temple frequently chooses good-looking kids. Honestly, I initially thought Jean is a runaway acolyte from somewhere. 」
「I thought he’s Ruf. 」
Dinosso also commented when Retze said that.
「I didn’t think he’s Ruf, ‘coz it’s unrealistic. Ah, I did suspect that he might be Ruf who emerged from whatever hidden village he is since not only is Jean kinda detached from this world, he’s obviously weird. 」
「What do you mean by obviously weird, huh? 」
I nitpicked Retze’s words.
Oy, you guys, stop turning away after glancing at me!
NEXT CHAPTER
RELEASE RATE
I Got Transferred in the Middle of a Mountain
Speed up schedule by 10 hours
Current schedule: Every 80 hours
Thanks for the treat.